Special Education - Mitaboni Primary School

The establishment of a Special Education Unit at Mitaboni Primary School in 2004 was Advantage Africa’s very first project. We are proud to say that the Unit is still flourishing almost a decade later, providing education and care for around 70 pupils with special needs.

Advantage Africa worked with local partner Ngalani Rural Development Centre to firstly build the disability friendly classrooms, dormitories and kitchen. We then equipped the unit and recruited teaching and support staff. Local children with learning disabilities, who had previously been left out of education, finally had a place to learn. Over the years Advantage Africa has supported further developments at Mitaboni, including the building of a large dining hall which is also used for various whole school gatherings and events. A poultry rearing project has also been established to provide nutritious eggs which supplement the pupils’ diets and offer a practical opportunity for them to learn about poultry keeping.

As with all of Advantage Africa’s initiatives we have worked hard, not only to set-up and staff the unit, but also to achieve the long term sustainability of this project. We have worked closely with the school administration and Ministry of Education and are pleased to say that they now run the special unit with minimal outside support.

Now that the special unit has been operational for many years pupils and teachers at the Primary School have become accustomed to interacting with children with disabilities. There are signs that attitudes towards disability are becoming more progressive in the community at large. Several of the ex-pupils who have finished school have now progressed on to home based projects of their own. Some rear livestock with their families at home and others have progressed to vocational courses at youth polytechnics.